It was the first time he'd scored a hundred in Test cricket, and the first time he'd got to three figures for India in any format, but there was nothing new about what he did thereafter. On day two of the Galle Test against Sri Lanka, Devdutt Padikkal stretched his score to 167, converting a first-class hundred into a 150 for the sixth time in ten attempts.
"I think, honestly, it's just the hunger to [score] more runs," Padikkal said at the end of the second day's play in an interview with the host broadcaster. "I just enjoy batting out there and the moment you get to hundred, it's easy to relax and feel that relief. But for me, the next 20-30 balls are a really important phase that I try and make sure that I'm completely focused, completely there.
"I think when I get past those first ten balls after [getting to my] hundred, I think it makes my job a whole lot easier. And over the years, I've seen so many cricketers get big runs, get big hundreds, especially back in Karnataka, so just watching them bat makes me want to do the same."
A defining feature of Padikkal's innings was his proactiveness against Sri Lanka's spinners. He began by rocking back to pull the first ball he faced for four, stepped out to launch his sixth ball for a straight six, and continued in that manner, using every chance to put pressure back on the bowlers and make it difficult for them to settle into a length.
"Yeah, I think we [the India team] have discussed that at length," Padikkal said. "Especially when you're playing spin, it's important that you have certain plans in your head. You cannot go out there and expect to react [to the ball] all the time. It's important that you have a couple of shots in your head that you want to play as soon as you go out there, so that you can put some pressure on the bowler as well.
"So I think over the last year or so, we have really worked on trying to find ways [within] our own strengths that we can really implement to make sure that we put pressure back [on the bowlers]."
Having clear plans against spin and being decisive in using them, Padikkal said, may have contributed to the fluency of his footwork too. He was particularly severe on balls that were marginally short, using the full depth of the crease to score quickly against the spinners.
"When you have that clarity in terms of what you want to do, I think that brings that confidence in your footwork as well," he said. "And I think I was just looking to make sure that I commit to whatever I do, 100%. Even if it's a defensive shot, I want to make sure that I really commit to playing that, so that made my footwork much better."
India finished a rain-affected day two at 460 for 9, with the pitch beginning to show increasing signs of taking sharp turn. Padikkal, however, felt it would take a little more time before it becomes truly difficult to bat on.
"Not [turning] a whole lot more," he said. "I think it will take probably another couple of sessions for [the pitch] to really start breaking up. But I think we know that in Galle, especially, it tends to quicken up pretty fast on the third and fourth day, so we are expecting that to happen again. Hopefully, it will help our bowlers as well."
Jurel: Plan was to score as many runs as we could quickly
With rain causing 55 overs to be lost on day two, India came out with a seeming urgency to score quick runs and get Sri Lanka batting as soon as possible. Rishabh Pant and Padikkal fell while using their feet to try and attack spin, and Dhruv Jurel contributed an enterprising 51 off 68 balls from No. 6. Jurel said the urgency broadly reflected the team plans.
"Yeah, you can say there was a plan to score as many runs as we could quickly. The plan wasn't to go bonkers from ball one, but it was to play sensible cricket and score as many runs as possible, and build good lower-order partnerships with me, Rishabh bhai and whoever batted behind us."
Jurel, who had also been part of India A's shadow tour of Sri Lanka in the lead-up to this series, felt the conditions in Galle were prone to fluctuating quickly.
"From what I've seen, even in the India A [games], this wicket keeps changing quickly, and it depends on the weather," he said. "If the covers have been on, moisture comes in, and if the sun comes out it becomes dry. It will keep changing [as this Test match progresses]. We just have to keep working hard."
A lot of that hard work, Jurel said, would fall onto the shoulders of India's bowlers.
"I feel we will have to bowl very long spells, like their bowlers have been doing. We'll need to stay consistent. It's not rocket science. We'll need to put balls in great areas. That's all. We have to keep it simple and stay determined. If we have to win, we have to take 20 wickets."